Daily Archives: May 3, 2022

North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for May 02, 2022

The “Rule of Law” is the political philosophy that all citizens are accountable for the same laws. This philosophy helped fuel the American revolution and was a key principle considered, by our founding fathers, when drafting the U.S Constitution. The Rule of Law ensures, that in a true democracy, the powerful, wealthy, or majority can’t use the law to oppress or control the minority. When it comes to regulating our coastal fisheries both the government and our state seem to struggle with this relatively simple concept. Simply put, it doesn’t matter whether you fish for food, profit, or pleasure, your impacts are similar and therefore you must be treated similarly under the law! Perhaps it’s time for another revolution! >click to read< to read all the updates >click here<, for older updates listed as NCFA >click here< 18:43

Lobster industry groups mount uncertain First Circuit fight on fishery’s future

Arguing before a skeptical First Circuit, an attorney representing a group of Maine lobster fishermen said a federal rule designed to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale targets a portion of the ocean where there are no right whales. “We need to figure out where the whales are and target those areas,” said attorney Alfred Frawley IV at oral arguments Tuesday before the federal appeals court in Boston. But the First Circuit appeared to give Frawley a frosty reception, saying at one point that the record lacked evidence that the seasonal closure would lead to lost lobster boats and jobs across the coast of Maine. Judge Sandra Lynch asked Frawley if he had approached attorneys for the Marine Fisheries Service,,, Frawley began to make two points, but Lynch cut him off: “Will you answer my question rather than making a speech?” the Clinton appointee said. Frawley then said his clients were not allowed to sit on the take-reduction team. >click to read< 16:18

Trip limits must be addressed in Newfoundland and Labradors snow crab fishery

SEA-NL is demanding Premier Andrew Furey address trip limits in the snow crab fishery or his government may have blood on its hands before the end of the fishing season. “The inshore fleet has one of the most dangerous jobs without trip limits adding to the risk,” says Ryan Cleary, Executive Director of SEA-NL. “Trip limits put pressure on enterprise owners — who are also dealing with the threat of a price drop, and fishery closures in the case of molting or soft-shell crab — to fish in weather they would not ordinarily fish in,” he said. “If government stands idly by and lives are lost this crab fishing season the province will have to answer for them directly.” >click to read< 15:09

Trial begins for fisherman and fish buyer accused of illegal halibut landings

A trial is underway in Halifax for a Sambro fisherman, a fish buyer and two related companies accused of illegal halibut landings The case is centred on seven trips made by the fishing vessel F/V Ivy Lew between May 2019 and June 2020. Captain Casey Henneberry is accused of failing to follow licence conditions in several instances, including on three trips when halibut catches were unloaded without a dockside monitor present. Buyer Samir Zakhour is accused of being at the wharf to buy halibut during the last “illegal offload” in June 2020 and “was a party to the events of offloading without a monitor,” Conrod said. He is also charged with misleading a fishery officer the night of his arrest. ALS Fisheries, which owns the boat, and Law Fisheries are also charged in the case. >click to read< 13:20

Massachusetts state lobster closure extended

As has become an annual tradition, the state’s yearly fishing closure to protect right whales has been extended until mid-May, cutting short a season already slashed in the name of species protection. The state sent out a notice to lobstermen Friday that the closure for 9,000 square miles of water, tentatively set to end May 1, would be extended through May 15 due to the presence of whales off the coast and near the Cape. For now, Massachusetts lobstermen are restricted to fishing in federal waters, where the season started at midnight Sunday, May 1. >click to read< 11:12

2021: A Year of Historic Value for Maine Commercial Fishermen

On the strength of an historic year for lobster and a rebounding elver fishery, the value of Maine’s commercially harvested marine resources in 2021 reached an all time high at $890,668,873. According to recently released data from the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the overall value earned by harvesters in 2021 jumped by more than $365 million and exceeded the previous overall record of $733,691,455, set in 2016, by $150 million. >click to read< 09:30

Prince Edward Island: Lobster fishermen sail out to start the spring season

It’s setting day, the start of the season when fishermen drop their traps and begin the two months of intensive work of bringing ashore the east coast’s famous delicacy. The season is starting with lobster prices high. While prices are up, so are costs. Diesel is at record-high prices, and bait is harder to come by with a moratorium on herring and mackerel fisheries. photos, >click to read< 08:47

‘I’ve been here all the time’

Elusive mariner David Atkinson has told a court he wasn’t hiding during the months he was out of contact with the justice system. However, he still has not spoken to his lawyer about charges laid by Maritime NZ over a trawler that grounded on a beach near Christchurch in 2019. Atkinson appeared on driving matters before Judge Russell Cooper in the Hastings District Court today. Discussion soon turned to an arrest warrant issued in the Christchurch District Court last month after it heard that Atkinson had been off the radar since September last year. >click to read< 07:58